Cute conifer, cold pot... it can work!

If you'll keep it out in a pot above ground over winter, choose for a plant hardy to a zone even colder than your own. Without earth stretching away on all sides -- the perfect insulation! -- many potted plants fail. Their roots freeze.

I have a dwarf Alberta spruce in a pot on my porch. I love it. It's perfect. But I'm told it can't stay in the pot over winter. Say it isn't so! - J.G. -

Picea glauca 'Conica' is a cutey -- a chubby Christmas tree with cellulite problems. It's also long lasting in a pot -- we know many that have been at their stations in a container for four or more years. Thus, dwarf Alberta spruces decorate many entryways.

Yours can stay in the pot over winter. It might die, but given the staying power of evergreens, that fact wouldn't be of concern until the plant browned out rather than greened up next May. Then, start over with a new one. However, if a plant is too dear to risk losing, you can insulate the pot where it sits or move it to a protected spot.

There is much more about plants that winter in pots over winter, in ensemble issue #161, "Cute conifer's at home in a pot over winter."